A Silver Hope
by The Harlequin Pirate
Summary: Lyroxia's destiny begins to unfold when she is trusted with the errand of a life time - to take a hidden dragon egg to the Varden. She takes on the task, but will she succeed with Murtagh on her tail?
1. Not a job for any slave

**EDIT; I'm currently rewriting this story, so there will be no more updates (the last was two years ago). The new version is called "A Glimpse of Silver", and I'm telling you now, Its a lot better. I would've taken this one down, but I just didn't have the heart to remove my first ever fanfic from the internet**. **If you like this, please check out the rewrite :) ~**

Lyroxia scowled as Anthony walked away. "Aww, come on, Anthony, I need your help!" she called. "look, I know it's your spare time and everything, but if I don't finish, the steward will make sure _I_ don't have any spare time for months, not to mention the beating i'll probably get... "

"Yeh, well that's your problem, in't it?" Anthony replied over his shoulder.

Lyroxia was desperately trying to find someone who would help her with her evening duties, and so far she wasn't having any luck.

"Why ain't Denzel helping you? He's supposed too, in't he?" Anthony said, coming to a halt and turning to look at her.

"Well, yes, he would be, if he hadn't got himself sold." Lyroxia couldn't stop an icy edge creeping into her voice.

Anthony paused and folded his arms. "If i decide to help you, what would i have to do?"

Lyroxia smiled. "We'll be working in the stables. Between us, we'll have to prepare about six horses for a ride along Leona Lake. Lady Salissa and her friends want to have a stupid picturesque picnic on the shore of the lake."

" ... Ok, i'll help, but don't expect this all the time, alright, Lyra?"

Lyroxia would have hugged him, if they weren't distracted by a loud smash that came from a room along the corridor. " Meet me down by the stables in about two hours, yeh?" She said.

"Alright then", Anthony grumbled, walking towards the slave's quarters.

Lyroxia was about to set off towards the source of the smash when Emeril, the steward, suddenly appeared round a corner to her left.

"Lyroxia!" he barked, in his coarse voice. "The master wants to speak with you, so get over to his study, quick, now, move it!"

Lyroxia was confused. "But, why, sir?" she dared to ask.

"Oh, don't ask me why a Lord like him wants to speak with a slave like yourself! I don't care, neither should you, just get over there!"

So Lyroxia turned on her heel and traversed the short distance to her master's study, passing old tapestries, statues and high arched windows as she walked. She was actually a little scared... she was sure she hadn't done anything wrong, but the only reasons she could think of for Lord Alexander Bailey to summon her would be if she had gotten into trouble, or if she was about to be sold.

She stopped outside the study door, and tentatively knocked.

"Come in."

Lyroxia entered, closed the door behind her then looked around. This room was different from the rest of the house, with its dark green walls and oiled ebony floor. Her master was sitting behind his dark wooden desk.

"Sit down, Lyroxia." Lord Bailey said, indicating to the chairs in front of the desk. Lyroxia decided not to mention that she hated being called by her full name.

Once Lyroxia had sat down opposite him, he continued; "I believe, Lyroxia, that if I am correct, you are the only person who can help me out of a rather tough predicament."

_What?_ she thought. "... I don't understand, sir..."

" Lyroxia, you were sent into slavery as a punishment for stealing jewellery a few months ago, am i correct?"

" ...That's right, sir."

" But it is my guess that you have stolen many things before that, for which you haven't been caught?"

This time Lyroxia stayed silent.

" I'll take that as a yes, shall I?... Now, before you became a slave, did you travel much?"

Lyroxia became more and more confused. _Where _is_ this conversation going?_ " Umm... yes, sir, i've been to Gil'ead, Uru' baen, Tierm, Kuasta, Dras Leona... i've been all the way down to the southern ports, sir."

" Good, good... are you competent in any kind of weapon?"

" Yes. i used to use two daggers and a shortbow..."

He nodded, and a small smile touched his lips. " And, er... how old are you?"

"Fourteen, sir"

"All right." He said. "So, to sum all this up, you are a fourteen year old, accomplished thief, competent in blades and archery? Perfect. Just what I thought."

" But sir... what do you mean?"

" I need you to deliver something to King Orrin for me."

Whatever Lyroxia had been expecting, it wasn't that. She retreated into silence, waiting for him to explain further. Instead, however, her master crossed the room and took an ordinary wooden box out of an oak wardrobe. Then he put it in front of Lyroxia, and lifted the lid. She gasped in shock.

Inside was a gleaming, silver dragon egg...

Return to


	2. Dancing light

Lyroxia Gaped. "Is that really a-"

"A dragon egg, yes"

"But how did you find-"

"Let's just say I discovered it long ago, and I have looked after it since then. You are the first person I have told... I hope it was not a mistake."

"... I... I won't let you down, sir." She said. Then she asked "but... how did you keep it a secret from King Galbatorix? You're in his court... you're close to him. Surely he suspects something. He'd love to get his hands on a dragon egg, and it'll spell disaster for you if he finds out you've been hiding this, sir, won't it?"

"Yes. Everything you have just said is completely right." Alexander replied. "But only in the past few days has the King been able to act on his suspicions. I told you that you are the only person I have told? You are not, however, the only person besides me in this household who knows about this egg. Ellen Miller, one of my maids, happened to stumble across it a few weeks ago. I'm not exactly sure what possessed her to do it, but she informed the King in order to receive a rather large reward of gold. I received a tip-off this morning from a friend in Uru'baen, also a noble in Galbatorix's court. He sent a messenger to warn me that the king has sent his Right Hand, apparently a young man by the name of Murtagh, to search my home, accompanied by a number of soldiers, for the reported egg."

"So you want me to take this to Surda?" She confirmed, slightly breathless.

"Yes. I'm confident that from there it will reach the Varden, and continue to assist them, which, of course, is a brilliant thing to happen."

Lyroxia knew what he was doing. He was trying to make her think he hated the King, just like he knew she did, so she will be more motivated to get this egg to the Varden. As it was, however, Lyroxia saw that he was only getting rid of this egg to save his own skin. Lyroxia herself was an incredibly good liar, and knew how to conceal certain aspects of body language. Her master, however, blinked far too much than a normal person should have to while he answered her question. She stayed silent for a few minutes, and then a thought crossed her mind.

"Is male or female? Can you tell?"

"This one is male. The female eggs are more ovular than the males."

"When should I leave?"

"Immediately. Take this map," he said, handing one to her across the desk," saddle up a horse, gather supplies and go."

A few hours later, darkness was seeping through the forest, and Lyroxia was making camp beside an overturned tree. She had been riding south from her home since noon. She led Belle, her horse, over to a grassy patch close to the fire and picketed her to a nearby tree. Once Belle was secure, Lyroxia removed the saddle bags and took them with her as she sat by the flames.

She took out the weapons her master had given her. There were two ordinary steel daggers, each about half a foot long, a rough pine bow, and a scarred leather quiver containing fifteen jagged arrows. They weren't pretty, nor did they look threatening like the ones she used to have, but she was glad to have them all the same- she hadn't held a bow or a dagger for months.

She picked up her map and studied it more closely than she had before. Her journey was simple. For now, all she had to do was travel south following the shore of Leona Lake, then the Jiet River, into Surda. From there she was confident that it would be easy to find a guide to Aberon.

As she put the map back next to the egg in the bags, the dragon egg caught the flickering light of the fire, and reflected it brilliantly, making it look not just silver, but gold, white and dozens of shades of red.

Intrigued, Lyroxia picked it up. She continued to gaze peacefully at the dancing colours for some minutes. Then she realised that there was a faint beating coming from inside the egg. She held it to her chest and pressed her ear to the surface of the silver shell, listening intently.

She could hear a rhythmic heartbeat. The dragon's? Or her own...?

Lyroxia suddenly jumped back in alarm. A faint squeak had pierced the tranquillity of the forest- from the egg.


	3. Moonscales

A few more squeaks came in the following minutes, and then the egg gently began to rock in her hands. Lyroxia was confused and immobile... then it dawned on her. The egg was hatching for her! The egg rocked again, only much more violently. Lyroxia set it down as cracks began to appear in the shell. Seconds later, a small, shining head emerged to the world, and the rest of the egg split open with a resounding crunch.

The dragon was exactly the same colour as the egg, but it shone like the moon. Everything about it was slender, its head, neck, limbs, body and especially the tail. He fixed a pair of sparkling violet eyes on Lyroxia, and tried to take a few tentative steps towards her. However, he tripped on his oversized wings, stumbled, and fell. As Lyroxia bent to scoop him up, the dragon stretched out and nudged her right palm with the tip of his nose.

Lyroxia cringed and almost yelled out as icy pain raced up her arm and spread throughout her entire body. It was minutes before the pain eased, but her palm wouldn't stop tingling. There, on her right hand, was a shining silver oval, same colour as her dragon.

_I can't believe it, _she thought,_ a few minutes ago I was just a punished thief, running an errand for my master... Now, I'm a dragon rider_.

She looked down to see the dragon sat on his haunches, staring up at her with its front paws on her legs. Lyroxia gently pulled him onto her lap and stroked his elegant neck. While she did so, she felt a strange presence against her consciousness. It puzzled her for a while, but when she realised feelings were emanating from it – that certainly were not her own – she guessed she must be feeling the dragon's consciousness... but that just confused her even more. She pulled some chicken legs out of the bags and gave them to the dragon, who immediately began to tear at them with the ferocity of a lion.

Still dazed, she then began to ponder on a name for her new companion, and after a while came up with three that she liked: Devlin, which meant fierce fighter, Kaileb, which meant faithful fighter and Kayden, which meant wise fighter. Unable to choose, she decided to wait till the dragon could understand, and choose a name himself.

She lay down, and fell asleep as the dragon tried to snuggle against her chest.

For the next few days, Lyroxia rode around the seemingly endless coast of Leona Lake. She kept away from the roads, with the dragon in her lap. He was always wide eyed and energetic, constantly gawping at new things with intensified curiosity.

Lyroxia's knowledge of dragons didn't stretch very far, but she did know some things, mostly little facts gleaned from stories she'd heard from various bards. She was aware that they came in every shade of every colour, were intelligent and had been in Alageasia much longer than humans. She had also listened to a minstrel perform a song about a war that took place between the dragons and the elves long ago, but she didn't know how true that was.

Although Lyroxia was utterly oblivious, the bond between her and the dragon was strengthening all the time. She found she was able to crudely communicate to him by vague emotions and images, though how it worked was beyond her.

She hoped she could find answers in Surda, if the murmurs of a new dragon rider who rode a sapphire dragon were true, of course. Even if she didn't, she knew that it was the safest place to be. But there were still an awful lot of miles to go for something to go wrong, she reminded herself.


	4. Resented imprisonment

Thanks for reading this far by the way, never would have guessed anyone could have put up with the spawn of my imagination for that long...

**DISCLAIMER: although Lyroxia and her dragon are completely my own creation, Chris Paolini still owns the inheritance series... lucky git**

* * *

Thorn Glided high over Leona Lake, appearing to have caught flame whenever his crimson hide reflected the sunlight. Below and behind, Lord Alexander Bailey's Manor lay smouldering, reduced to a forlorn, blackened lakeside hovel.

_Thorn,_ Murtagh said. _There can't be any point searching this far up the lake. A child can't have travelled this far in under a week._

_The girl didn't travel, Murtagh, the horse did._

_Doesn't matter. They can't have gone this far._

_Well, what do you suggest? We've been scouring the northern roads of Leona Lake for hours. There's only stinking fishermen and pathetic tradesmen. She's not there, she has to be down here. I really wish you wouldn't argue so much. I've been flying with little rest for a week, I'm tired, I don't even remember the last time I went out hunting and I swear my wings are about to snap. I'm exhausted, you know I am. I just want to find the troublesome brat and be done._

_... You don't truly mean that, do you?_

Thorn was silent for a few minutes, confused, for there was hurt in Murtagh's he realised what he had said.

_No – no, I didn't. I want that egg to reach the Varden as much as you do, I swear. That was a rash thing to say. I apologise. It's just –_

_I know... we have to look for her, whatever the cost... Galbatorix has us wrapped around his little finger._

Then they both retreated into a gloomy silence, and continued to search for the egg and its young courier. Thorn used his eyes, while Murtagh reached out with the tendrils of his mind.

Yesterday they had arrived at Lord Alexander Bailey's estate, where Murtagh skipped exchanging pleasantries and infiltrated the Lord's mind instead. There, he had learned everything he had needed to know, what Lord Bailey knew of the egg, where the egg was and where it was going. He also learnt of the appearance of the girl he was looking for. She was of average height, had long, dark brown hair, vividly green eyes, even features and pale skin. After he had retrieved all the information he wanted to, the manor was torched by Thorn, who had been acting on the King's orders. As far as they knew, no one had survived the blaze.

They flew on, and the afternoon turned to evening, and evening turned to night, and still they hadn't found any luck regarding their search. Murtagh could feel his friend's wing beats becoming heavier and more strained as he battled the wind to stay airborne. Murtagh didn't blame him in the slightest. Thorn had been flying virtually non-stop since they left Uru'baen last week.

Then, finally, Murtagh detected a group of consciousnesses that looked as if they might be what they had been looking for.

The first was a beast he identified as a horse, the second, the oldest and most intelligent of the three, was a human girl, but the third, he wasn't sure about. It was very young, not even a week old, yet it was aware of its surroundings. He told Thorn to fly over to where he thought they were – a small cove surrounded by dismal grey rock which opened onto the lake. It was far from the road, and it seemed difficult to find.

As they soared over it, Murtagh looked down. All he could see in the dark, lying on the sand were two outlines, one a lumpy shadow of a horse, and, close by he could just make out the figure of a child sleeping next to the fire.

But the sight had an incredible impact on Thorn, who, of course, could see much clearer than his rider could. Even when it was as dark this, he could see almost as well as Murtagh could during the day. As a result, he saw the dragon hatchling curled up against the girl, his pure scales reflecting the light from the fire brilliantly. He then let Murtagh, who was confused at his sudden shock, see through his eyes as he looked upon the scene below.

Realisation washed over Murtagh when he saw the silver dragon as it slept below.

_The egg hatched for the child! Murtagh exclaimed._

Thorn glided for a moment in silence. Then he said,_ You do realise the child's fate now, don't you, Murtagh?_

Dismay gripped him. _Yes. We'll have to capture her, against our will. Then... Galbatorix will turn her into his servant and..._

_... And it'll be all our fault,_ Thorn finished miserably, as he locked his wings, sinking towards the cove where the dragon and it's rider lay, completely oblivious.

* * *

A/N well? what do you think? is it good? or is it crap? Please tell me!

**by the way, remember last chapter when Lyroxia was on about what to call her dragon? either Devlin, Kaileb or Kayden? i aint got a clue, either. i'd like it if you could tell me which one you think the dragon should be called out of those three, and the one which proves the most popular is what i'll name him.**

thanks guys, chapter 5 will be up in a couple of days


	5. Venomous

A/N: ok, i know i havent posted for ages, put this chapter has been a pain in the backside. Writer's block, lost drafts, etc, etc... but i'm happy with the result.

* * *

Thorn landed a few seconds later on a flat outcropping of grey rock, about twenty metres from where Lyroxia and the dragon lay sleeping. Murtagh silently dismounted and prepared to jump the few feet onto the sand below. However, a shrill squeak split the air, and he lost balance and nearly fell.

_Careful,_ warned Thorn, _The hatchling was awake all along._

Cursing, Murtagh leapt quickly off the rock, down onto the sandy shore of the lake. He looked over towards the camp in front of him. Lyroxia had already got to her feet, woken by her dragon's cry, and pulling daggers from her belt. Murtagh ran his hand over Zar'roc's hilt, though didn't draw his sword.

Thorn stayed put on the ragged ledge, silently observing the scene as his rider slowly advanced towards the girl and her young dragon, which had flown up to her shoulder. Thorn had felt all his tiredness chased away by the sight of another of his kind, but the thought that it must now share his fate suppressed his euphoria.

Lyroxia stood her ground as Murtagh approached her, and clenched her fists around her daggers. She glared straight into his eyes, daring him, taunting him to come any closer. Murtagh glared straight back, impressed. He paused a few feet away and studied her. Everything about her was feral and tense; her stance, her expression, and the gleam in her eyes as she looked from Murtagh to Thorn.

_A snake, _Murtagh thought,_ she's a threatened snake, ready to strike._

_That's right,_ chided a voice inside his head, _a pretty little snake..._ _don't let her bite._

Murtagh went rigid. That was Galbatorix.

_I know you're reluctant to bring her to me, Murtagh, _the King continued,_it looks like she's already sunk her fangs into you. Will the venom reach your heart? Will you let her escape?... Or will you bring her to me?... If the girl doesn't reach Uru'baen, Murtagh, I promise that I won't let you blink without screaming in agony._

Murtagh shivered where he stood as the King withdrew from his mind. He knew the King would keep his promise, he had tortured him to near death before, when he had been returned to the castle after his capture from Tronjheim.

_Now we really have no choice... if the king knows... _Thorn muttered. Murtagh sighed, and returned his gaze to Lyroxia and the silver dragon on her shoulder, who gave another shrill cry.

"Who are you?" Said Lyroxia, still glaring at Murtagh with hard defiance.

"Murtagh", He replied. But before he could say anything else, Lyroxia's eyes widened, and she hissed;

"You're the king's right hand!", she looked up again at the hulking, shadowy figure of Thorn up on the rock, and Murtagh thought he spotted a flicker of fear cross her face for the first time. "You're a dragon rider, that's how i was found so quickly...", she said, in a whisper Murtagh could barely hear. Then she gasped. " But... but how? _How _did you know?"

"I learnt everything I needed to know from your old master. He didn't mean to tell me anything, of course, but I have different ways than the usual question-and-answer tactic."

"What's happened to him now, where is he?"

"Dead", he said, simply. "We were ordered to torch the manor and everybody in it once we had gleaned the information we needed about you and the egg."

Lyroxia groaned in dismay. "... so now you're going to take me to the king, aren't you?"

"Unfortunately, yes, that's what i was told to do, much against my will."

"And you're expecting me to go quietly?" She asked. "You haven't even drawn your sword yet."

Murtagh ran his fingers over Zar'roc's pommel, but, like before, didn't draw it. "No. I'm not expecting you to go quietly, but i'm not expecting to have to use my sword, either."

_Don't push it, Murtagh_, Thorn snapped.

"Well then", Lyroxia said. "You're right".

Without warning, she bounded across the sandy bank and slipped between the dark trees on the eastern shoreline of the lake, the hatchling still on her shoulder.

Murtagh cursed and ran into the forest after her, whilst Thorn took to the air once again and proceeded to glide over the darkened trees.

Murtagh tried to find lyroxia using the same trick he had been using all day: trying to locate her through her mind. After a few seconds searching, he found her leaping away about fifty feet from him. Without hesitation, he shot after her.

Lyroxia sprinted between the trees in the darkness, with the comfortable weight of her dragon on her left shoulder. The trees were widely spaced at first, but then grew closer together. Within minutes, she had to stop running to avoid tripping on tree roots or banging into trunks when she looked over her shoulder. The dragon hopped down from her shoulder, then flew upwards into a tree, following her from above. Lyroxia barely noticed. Instead she concentrated on putting as much distance between herself and Murtagh as possible. A few seconds later, though, she could hear pounding footsteps, quickly gaining on her. Alarmed, she put on a burst of speed, but couldn't keep it up for long, and had to jog again. She suddenly found herself infront of a large but shallow stream. Breathing hard, she looked left and right, but the stream continued both ways without any visible crossing. It was about five feet wide, but she had to jump it- the bank was to wide and deep to step across and she could hear Murtagh's footsteps again. She quickly walked backwards a few metres, took a deep breath then sprinted back towards the stream.

She was a foot away when a vast amount of shock and pain bounded into her through the link she shared with her dragon. It distacted her enough to send her tumbling into the shallow water below. She yelled out when she landed hard on a jutting rock in the middle of the stream, heard a crack, and winced as pain erupted up her elbow. Her vision blurred and she tried with difficulty to sit up in the flowing water. Then she faintly heard Murtagh shout sarcastically; "Brilliant, Thorn, absolute genius! Lets try and kill the new rider and her dragon while we're at it, eh, why not?" Murtagh came into view a few seconds later, and roughly dragged her out of the stream. Lyroxia saw Thorn land a few metres away, then cried out, struggling against Murtagh's grip when she saw that Thorn had her silver dragon between his jaws.

Murtagh, scowling, put his hand on her brow and muttered "Slytha".

Lyroxia felt herself being thrust into darkness, and knew no more.


	6. Forgotten Capture

**Disclaimer: I dont own the inheritance cycle yet... but you'll help me get it, wont you? joking! joking! ...sue and die**

**6th chapter coming up...**

Lyroxia stirred. The world was coming back into focus. All around her were dismal walls of dark rock, and she was numbly aware of raised voices close by. Head throbbing, she forced herself to sit up and take a look around. Leaning against the damp wall, she found that she was locked in a dungeon chamber. The room was roughly rectangular, and she was facing a steel bar door, past which she could see part of an empty corridor, just as gloomy as the room she was in now. Manacles and chains, covered in dried blood, hung from the low ceiling, and the cold air made Lyroxia shiver.

She let her shoulders slump, and tried to think clearly. _Where am I?_ _Why am I here? Why_ should_ i be here? _But she couldn't answer anything. Whenever she tried to remember the past few weeks, she was met by a kind of hazy barrier that separated those memories from the rest of her mind. She also felt like something was missing, a part of her that had been torn away. Quite suddenly, she realised that the angry voices outside the chamber were shouting about her.

"We had to give the girl essence of drae-" Even in her current state, Lyroxia was certain that the owner of those words was not human, it reminded her of the dark and the damp.

"I told you _not_ to drug her!" It was a young man's voice, and was vaguely familiar, but Lyroxia couldn't have said why.

"We had no choice... she nearly escaped while you and the dragon were resting..." This hissing voice was similar to the first, even less human, and when she heard it, Lyroxia was reminded of disease and decay.

"She... she what? She nearly escaped?", the young man said.

"Yess... she picked the lock of her cell and was trying to release her dragon when we found her..."

No, Lyroxia thought. They're not talking about me, I don't have a dragon...

"Ok then, you had no choice, but when will the drugs wear off?"

"It is a weak drug... A day or so at most..."

"That's too long. I need to take her now, and I need her to remember what happened last night... Galbatorix won't be happy."

"He would have been even angrier if the rider had escaped..."

Lyroxia's curiosity overcame her. Ignoring the painful throbbing in her head and limbs, she staggered to her feet, and stumbled to the door. Between the bars, she could see three figures down the passageway to her left. Two had their backs to her, were hunchbacked and garbed in black robes. The other was a man of about twenty, with Galbatorix's crest embroidered on his dark tunic.

The young man began to reply, but then he caught sight of Lyroxia at the bars and stopped. He then continued,"I'll be back in about twelve hours, to see if she remembers anything..." with that, he turned on his heel and walked out of sight.

The remaining two figures turned around to look at Lyroxia. She couldn't make out any of their features because of their hoods, but their eyes glinted terribly in the shadows that obscured their faces. They stood still for a few seconds, then they strode off too, in the opposite direction of the other man.

Murtagh stormed angrily up to the cavernous room where Thorn sat devouring several deer.

_What's the matter with you?_ Thorn said, as Murtagh slammed the door shut behind him so hard the wood split.

_The Ra'zac! The only way they can contain a fourteen year old girl is rendering her unconscious!_

_And that is so bad because...?_

_They used drugs, and now Lyroxia doesn't remember a thing!_

Thorn growled. _Why did they have to do that anyway?_

_Apparently she escaped from her own cell and was trying to release her dragon when a lethrblaka caught her at it. _Murtagh sat down next to Thorn and leaned against his front leg.

_What? ...It seems we may have underestimated her. She couldn't have gotten out of Helgrind, though. We're more than a hundred metres above ground._.. _When will she remember?_

_The Ra'zac said a day at most..._

_That's too long. _Thorn said quickly

_I know... if Eragon and Saphira are on their way here... We can't risk meeting them. You do understand that we only won our last battle because Eragon and Saphira were both exhausted?_

_Of course, although I hate to admit it. We would definitely have lost if Galbatorix hadn't placed so many wards around us at the Burning Plains. We're no match for them, really. But... how are you so sure that they're on their way?_

_They're coming to rescue Eragon's brother's fiancee. There have been reports of a blue dragon heading north from Surda in the past few days. If the reports are correct, Eragon will be here within the day..._

* * *

A/N Ok, so nothing much happening right now, but this took a long time to write. Big plot twist coming up, by the way. Just wanna thank the people who have reveiwed;; Hazel Cloud and squashed banana. thank you!


	7. Unwilling Remembrance

I'd like to dedicate this chapter to my best friend, Bianca G, AKA Greenface02, and tell her that nothing that happened is her fault, and we'll still be best friends even now when we're about 2 hundred miles away. We have the internet!

* * *

Lyroxia woke up for the fourth time in just a few hours, and groaned as she sat up, rubbing her head, which continued to throb painfully. Ignoring this, she tried to remember the dream she had just had. It had been blotchy and vague, yet so real. The dream had consisted of a series of images. Each one had flashed for a few seconds to the forefront of her mind, before ebbing away, to be replaced by another. The first image she remembered was sitting in Lord Alexander's study, and the Lord had just lifted the lid of a grubby wooden box, and she saw the dragon egg inside. The second was of holding the dragon egg close to her chest, as it beat faintly and reflected the light from the fire... a new born dragon hatchling, nudging her hand, then she was examining her palm, which now bore the Gedway Ignasia, the mark of a dragon rider... stroking a beautiful silver dragon hatchling... The list went on.

The dream confused Lyroxia, yet it scared her as well. She was sure she had never had a dream like that before, it must mean something. Her mind was gradually clearing up, and she began to think more clearly. Slowly, she raised her right palm to eye level, and she recognised the exact same silvery, oval scar she had seen in her dream. She didnt remember acquiring it... But didn't her dream tell her? The dream showed a dragon touching her hand, and then this mark appearing... but that was impossible, she thought. But there was a small voice in her mind nagging at her that it wasn't, not necessarily, and she knew it.

Murtagh restlessly paced around the small chamber, highly agitated, and utterly exhausted.

_Murtagh,_ Thorn said_, Sleep, now._

_I can't._

_Well then, eat something._

_Like what? The Ra'zac only eat human flesh... I don't think a meal here would be very enjoyable? Do you? _

_Lie down, then._

_Leave me alone._

_Sit down, then. And if you want to be alone, you can always sit in the corner facing the wall and pretend I'm not here_.

_Stop nagging me, Thorn._

_No. Rest._

_No!_

_Rest, Murtagh._

_No._

_I'll tie you down myself. I'm warning you_.

_Resting won't be very helpful if I'm asleep when Eragon and his cousin arrive._

_Eragon and Saphira are not due to arrive at Helgrind for a fair few hours. If they arrive while you are sleeping, do you really think I won't wake you? I've already recuperated, I won't need to sleep for ages._

Mostly because he could not think of another argument than anything, Murtagh slouched over to the rough bed, and sullenly lay down on it, grumbling as he did so.

_Good_, said a satisfied Thorn. _Now, you should visit the girl around mid afternoon to see if she remembers anything... Ok? I'll wake you when it's time._

Murtagh mumbled something indistinct, his voice muffled by the pillows, then immeadiatly began to snore. Thorn rolled his eyes, and proceeded out of the chamber, then padded down a rough stone tunnel.

He carried on walking for only a few more minutes, until he came to a small chamber, only slightly wider then the tunnel that led to it. Huddled in a corner was the silver hatchling. He had one end of a chain around his neck, the other end was attached to a wooden stake which was buried in the cold stone wall of the chamber.

He looked up as Thorn entered and let out another one of his shrill squeaks as he scrambled clumsily to his feet.

_Oh, be quiet,_ Thorn said. That harsh noise was starting to hurt his ears.

The hatchling, who, of course, hadn't understood a word, let out another cry as the older dragon lay down beside him, and bared his tiny, needle like fangs.

_Missing Lyroxia? _Thorn asked him.

The hatchling looked up and blinked as he recognised his rider's name, looking up at Thorn with curiosity and apprehension in his eyes.

_She's alright, _Thorn said, but for the reaction he got this time, he might have been talking to the wall. The baby dragon knew practically nothing of this language, but Thorn continued to talk to him. He new it was important for them to become friends, and it would be hard to make that happen if the hatchling was left with only the pain of being captured by Thorn to brood on in his hours alone. Thorn talked to him for about half an hour, droning on and on; moaning about Murtagh, ranting about galbatorix, until the dragon began snoring as Thorn began monologuing about his favourite hunting sites in Alageasia.

Feeling satisfied that the hatchling didn't think of him as a big of a threat anymore, Thorn got up, yawned and stretched, looking regretfully back at the chain round the hatchling's neck as he left.


	8. Out of their grasp

**A/N ;;; Okay. I've finally got my butt back in gear and started to write again. Sorry for the absence, people. So this is Chapter Eight of A Silver Hope. Enjoy!**

Lyroxia leaned against the bars of her cell door, trying to see past them into a cell on the opposite wall, about five metres to her left. She could make out a thin, emaciated figure chained to wall inside it. It was almost impossible to see. The torch brackets on the dreary black walls held only a few small flames, which threw most of the corridor into shadow, and gave everything a distorted look.

Sighing, she gave up trying to peer into the cell and slumped backwards onto her knees. The drugs had worn of now; she remembered everything, and wasn't about to sit and wait for Murtagh to drag her off to Galbatorix.

She quickly scanned the floor around her and spotted a worn, sharp stone a few feet away from the bars of her cell door. It looked like an old spearhead. Reaching out an arm between the bars, she tried to get hold of it, but her hand fell inches short. So she pushed her torso against the bars again and stretched. Her fingers brushed the spearhead, then the stone's razor edge scraped roughly against her hand, deeply cutting her palm and her fingers. Lyroxia gritted her teeth as she tightened her grip and brought the spearhead onto the other side of the bars. Then she dropped the stone and examined her shaking hand.

It was her right hand that was injured, the hand that bore the Gedway Ignasia, and the silvery, ovular scar was rent down the middle by a bloody slash, which was quickly leaking blood; as were three of her fingers. She had had no idea by looking at it in the half-light that the spearhead was sharp enough or hard enough to cause that much damage.

She kneeled up, trying to ignore the pain shooting up her right arm like icy daggers, and used the point of the spearhead to pick the lock on her cell with her left hand. It was difficult, as she was right handed, but she had picked locks more difficult than this before, and had the door open in a matter of minutes.

She stumbled out of her prison, gingerly clutching the spearhead, and made her unsteady way up the dark corridor, not knowing where she was, or how she could escape. Her mind was dominated by one instinct only; find her dragon.

After what felt to Lyroxia like an hour of staggering up damp dark tunnels, but could hardly have been more than twenty minutes wandering; screeching sounds filled her ears. The high-pitched, wailing scream of a powerful beast suddenly filled the chamber she stood in, shortly followed by a majestic bellow that clearly came from a more natural, yet still deadly creature.

She froze in mid-step. More sounds of violence flooded the chamber, the shriek of strong talons on unforgiving rock, the echoing clang of metal striking metal, and the distant yells of men.

The commotion seemed to be above her, and to the left. She continued on in the tunnel she was facing, as that led her to the noise. She knew that it probably wasn't very wise to head in that direction, but frankly, she didn't have a choice. Once she knew what was going on up there, she'd most likely discover more about where she was and how to get out.

**A/N. There. it's short, i know. But I like short chapters. :T **

**I actually just have some real bad writer's block. It's all in my mind, I know. Sorry people.  
**


	9. Chained again

**Chapter Nine. **

**I worked hard, for your enjoyment... now please, devour my work with haste! :D  
**

* * *

Lyroxia aproached more cautiously as the sounds grew louder. She carefully climbed her way up a stone stairway in the darkness, and continued on in the ajoining corridor.

She halted as she heard the echo of a huge beast yelling in pain. Another animal roared, then another. Lyroxia debated taking a few steps back. She didn't know what they were, but there were three of them. And if the sounds they made where anything to go by, they were huge. And powerful. And very deadly.

As if it wasn't enough, the din and clamour of fighting men was also audible.

She took a breath to steady her sudden apprehension, then crept forward towards the battle. She couldn't see much, but the passageway was lightening slightly. As Lyroxia passed the entrance to a chamber off the corridor, her alert ears picked up a much softer, quieter sound. The faint scratch of clacking claws, followed by a frightened squeak.

She gasped, and followed the noise, still clasping the spearhead in her fist. Within seconds, the dark corridor had widened, and Lyroxia soon caught a glimpse of silver scales ahead.

_You said you'd wake me BEFORE they got here! _Murtagh roared with his mind.

_I would have, if I hadn't fallen asleep-_

_You FELL _ASLEEP_?_

_Yes, and I'm sorry, but I really think we should save this argument for some other time-_

_So this is your fault! You can tell that to Shruiken-_

_Murtagh, shut your stubborn face and move QUICKER!_

Thorn and Murtagh were hurtling down one of Helgrind's larger cold stone passages, the sounds of vicious combat heavy in their ears.

They were running down a lethrblaka's passage to give Thorn space to move, but their route via the larger corridors was a lot longer. Despite this, it only took the two of them a few minutes to reach the cells. This chamber was much to small for Thorn to do more than shove his shoulders into, so Murtagh darted deftly around his companion and sprinted to Lyroxia's cell solo.

Before he got there, however, he saw the bar door slightly ajar. Without pausing to look inside, Murtagh cursed loudly and kicked the door shut, then sprinted back to Thorn.

Thorn growled in an annoyed sort of way as he read his rider's mind. _We should have kept the child with us._

Murtagh swung himself swiftly up onto Thorn's shoulders, and didn't answer as the red dragon bolted down the passage, his features grimly set. He wanted Lyroxia to escape, didn't want her to suffer his fate, but he wasn't about to put his life on the line letting her do so. So for now, he was the girl's unwilling enemy.

_She'll be after her dragon, _Thorn said as he ran, _so we'll head there._

A few moments later Thorn skidded to a stop outside the hatchling's chamber, only to discover that it too was empty. They both gave snorts of anger and annoyance, but turned back swiftly without a word and sprinted back up the draconian passages, intent on finding Lyroxia.

Lyroxia had her hatchling clutched safely in her arms as she walked through the near darkness. Their breathing was heavy, and eerily synchronised. They both drew in a hasty breath, then shuddered as they let the air go, at exactly the same time.

Blood from Lyroxia's wounded hand was smeared all over the dragon's pearlescent scales, but he didn't mind that now, not when the din of unknown beasts and men were echoing at them so loudly. His tail twitched with fear, curiosity and apprehension, as his rider carried him ever closer to the dull light at the end of the passage.

Lyroxia forced herself to keep putting one foot in front of the other through a failing determination. Every instinct and sense she possessed was screaming at her to turn tail, sprint away from the roars of defiance and pain from up ahead, and yet every ounce of logic she had was urging her onwards; If she knew what the fighting was and who was doing it, maybe she'd find some clues to where she was, and how to escape.

So the girl stuck to the shadowy walls as she falteringly, hesitantly, yet bravely stepped forwards.

Lyroxia's breath caught. Her hatchling let out his trademark squeak. They had reached the end of the passageway, and were hovering out of sight right beside the entrance to the cavern in which the fighting was taking place. They had just glimpsed inside: Three gargantuan, sinewy beasts writhed together, biting and screeching and scratching and kicking. Two were black and bat-like, with beaks and rippling muscles. The other, Lyroxia was sure, was a dragon. Surely the flying Sapphire, that had aroused all those rumours she had heard... The one that allied the Varden.

Before she could think anything else, she heard a voice that she recognised horribly as Murtagh's. "Nice try," it hissed, as hands enclosed around her mouth and waist, dragging her backwards, and then she was looking fearfully into Murtagh's triumphant smile.

She attempted to make a noise that was halfway between a snarl and a muffled scream, but Murtagh silenced her with a foreign word, and she couldn't utter a sound. Her dragon wriggled out of her grasp. The hatchling tried to glide away, though there was no escaping from Thorn; His razor white claws knocked the baby dragon off course, then pinned him to the ground.

Murtagh began hissing in a language unknown to Lyroxia. The girl wasn't listening, too busy writhing and struggling as hard as she could to break Murtagh's grasp. It was in vain; her captor's grip was like iron. She stopped her futile struggling, and concentrated her efforts on bending her arm around her so she could thrust her spearhead into Murtagh's side.

Murtagh didn't notice her change of tactics. Only when the keen, serrated stone raked against his ribs did he stop muttering his spell, and began swearing and cursing as he thrust Lyroxia behind him. Clutching at his side, Murtagh continued to gasp out the ancient language, trying to ignore the seething scrape.

Lyroxia barrelled into the wall hard. Dazed, she sank to her knees, clutching the back of her head, and gritted her teeth as she waited for the throbbing of her skull, and the little lights that had popped in front of her eyes, to fade away.

Murtagh abrubtly stopped using the ancient language. "Now..." He said drowsily, "That should stop them _seeing_ us, at least... Of course, they couldn't sense us to begin with, but... " He paused, then grimaced at his bloodstained shirt.

Thorn grunted and looked anxiously at his rider, who replied with a dismissive nod. He passed a hand over his side for a few moments, and it seemed to mend. Lyroxia didn't notice. She was struggling to remain conscious, and her eyesight kept slipping out of focus.

Murtagh and Thorn returned their attention to the sounds of battle from the cavern ahead. The fighting was much quieter now, Murtagh realised with some alarm. He couldn't hear any dragon roaring, or lethrblaka screeching - just the din of fighting men, which soon stopped.

Thorn and his rider tensed. Then, lumbering out of the shadows, the Ra'zac passed them in the passage. The shorter one was supporting the taller, who seemed to be unconscious, and their robes were ripped and soaked with red.

Despite the fact that Murtagh's spell only prevented the Ra'zac from seeing them, the Ra'zac were too distracted and injured to detect them by smell or sound. As they rounded the corner, the shorter Ra'zac gave a mysterious hiss, and the little light that was in the cavern was extinguished as quickly as a candle in the wind.

_Thorn_?

_ Here_.

_I didn't know they could do that. So much for my spell. Eragon won't be far behind them, though...  
_

_I hope you're not afraid of the dark._

_Ha Ha. Where is she?_

Thorn only knew where Lyroxia was by her smell, so he simply estimated. _About three strides behind you._

Murtagh touched Lyroxia with his mind. She was conscious, but passive, unresponding. _I'd make it about four strides, actually._

_Whatever. _

The hatchling began to struggle under Thorn's claws. He scratching and biting at his ankles, and letting out high-pitched growls. He was clearly frightened by the sudden lack of light.

"Maela," Murtagh whispered, as quietly as he could. The hatchling's growls stopped immediately, but he continued to writhe.

_Let him go, _Murtagh said to Thorn.

_No - too much of a risk._

_He's scared; all he wants is his rider._

Reluctantly, Thorn released the younger dragon, who immediately stumbled in Lyroxia's direction.

Mutagh and Thorn could hear Lyroxia stir as her dragon clambered into her lap. They were sat in an alcove in the passageway. Thorn shuffled over, and crouched in front of it, so that the pair would have to climb over his bulk if they were to try and escape. Murtagh placed himself next to his dragon's shoulders.

_Don't move. Someone's approaching_... Thorn warned.

"Maybe you're different, but I can't fight in the dark." The quiet voice floated through the passage. Murtagh didn't recognise it, so he assumed it was Eragon's cousin's.

"If I make a light, the Ra'zac won't come near us, not when I now a spell that works on them. They'll just hide until we leave. We have to kill them while we have the chance." Murtagh held his breath. They were Eragon's words...

"What am I supposed to do? I'm more likely to run into a wall and break my nose than I am to find those two beetles... They could sneak around behind us and stab us in the back."

"Ssh... Hold on to my belt, follow me, and be ready to duck..."

The voices faded as Eragon and Roran progressed deeper down the tunnel, and they eventually became silence.

_That was close. They must have passed within two meters of us_.

_Come on. We need to get out of here, and we need to hurry up about it_.

**A/N. There you have it. Hope you enjoyed reading it, I certainly loved writing it. I should apologize, though - It's been months since i last updated this.**

**EDIT; Please note once more that I'll never update this again, if you want to read more of this story, (and a much better written version) please read the work-in-progress rewrite, A Glimpse of Silver. ~  
**


End file.
